The amount of money the federal government takes out of the U.S. economy in taxes will increase by more than 30 percent between 2012 and 2014, according to the Budget and Economic Outlook published today by the CBO.

The amount of money the federal government takes out of the U.S. economy in taxes will increase by more than 30 percent between 2012 and 2014, according to the Budget and Economic Outlook published today by the CBO.

At the same time, according to CBO, the economy will remain sluggish, partly because of higher taxes.

In the book The Conservative Mind: From Burke to Santayana Russell Kirk wrote six tenet of conservatism:

.
1 A belief in a inspirational harmony based in tradition, God, or natural law;
2. An affection for the "variety and mystery" of human existence;
3. A conviction that society requires orders and classes that emphasize "natural" distinctions;
4. A belief that property and freedom are coupled;
5. A faith in custom, convention, and prescription, and
6. A recognition that innovation must be tied to existing traditions and customs, which entails a respect for the political value of prudence

I love that all the remaining candidates are trying to hitch their wagon to the Reagan star and declare themselves the “real” conservative; like this is all it takes to win the nomination (and the Presidency.) First off, and I might be committing a sacrilege or heresy here, but should Reagan really be the standard bearer on what conservatism should be in this country? I think not…

Don’t misunderstand me, the years between 1981 – 1989 were great years for the U.S. and were the formative years for my personal political worldview, mostly due to Ronald Reagan and his leadership as President, but (and this is a big but) was he as conservative and his legend has became due to his conservatism or his pragmatism given the world and domestic issue he faced. I would argue that in that point of time, and given the events that were before him, the only real solution were conservative solutions that he was more than happy to implement and that he became more conservative as he saw those ideas put into action and work. The change in the Democratic party of which he once belonged (disappearance of real pro-life Dems, a weakened military stance, “Blue dog” and fiscal conservatism), the need for a strong military during the “cold” war, expediting the economic recovery of the Carter administration with much needed tax cuts and rise of the militant leftist all contributed to Reagan’s actions. A politician, even the very best ones, is always bound by doing the very things that will keep them in office so they can achieve the agenda they are putting forth so they cannot be absolute in their beliefs but need to be more pragmatic (in the best sense) to get initiatives passed and implemented. By judging a conservative candidate by other conservative politicians we are already in a compromised position as to what a candidate will compromise on and what issue they will be steadfast.

A better gauge for judging a conservative candidate should be those that have espoused a pure viewpoint, and then when compromise is needed, the jump is not into non conservative and dangerous territory. Authors and Conservative thinks we should all be judging these candidates conservative “street cred” against are men like: James M. Beck, Henry Adams, T. S. Eliot, Allen Tate, Andrew Lytle, Donald Davidson, Milton Friedman, George J. Stigler, Barry Goldwater, George H. Nash and of course William F. Buckley, Jr and his band of writer at the National Review (namely Russell Kirk, and L. Brent Bozell, .) These authors and conservative theorists were unrestrained by the pressures of votes (or in the case of some of today’s known “conservative’s” mostly in the talk radio realm, advertisers and market share) looked inside the conservative mind and philosophy to the heart of why conservatism (and practical conservatism) practices in the right measure is the best way to steer the federalist ship that in our great country.

To quote William F. Buckley, Jr.”Truth is a demure lady, much too ladylike to knock you on your head and drag you to her cave. She is there, but people must want her, and seek her out. “ and so is the action of finding a politician that is not telling the voters what they want to hear to get their vote and what they truly believe and will act upon in once they are put into office…..”Hope and Change”, “Compassionate conservative” both sound great but whose hope, what is going to change and whose definition of compassion are really the more needed answers to give us insight on who we want running the show in D.C. As Tommy Boy says so eloquently, “The point is, how do you know the fairy isn't a crazy glue sniffer? ”Buildin' model airplanes!" says the little fairy, well, we're not buying it. He sneaks into your house once, that's all it takes. The next thing you know, there's money missing off your dresser and your daughter's knocked up, I've seen it a hundred times.”

The point here is that we shouldn’t compare candidates to other candidates but we should aspire to compare those running for office against the best minds of their given philosophy and then go from there to assess their truthfulness and reliability to serve the position. These primaries are fun political theater, I would state that any of these Republican candidates would be better then the crash course we are currently on with the current administration. But as voters we need to be sure that we do not set them up as a torch bearer of a previous politician, no matter how revered that person is because there are more lofty ideals that our leaders should aspire to than to be the reincarnation of a politician……..they need to aspire to be the touch bearer of a philosophy that can re invigorate this country to resume its greatness as a beacon of liberty to the world.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

We Hold These Truths
The White House recently told the press there couldn’t be more difference between my position on gay marriage and President Obama’s.

On reflection, I agree.

President Obama’s position on marriage is constantly “evolving,” as he so often says. He’s not sure what marriage is, or what it should become, and no doubt right now he’s consulting highly-paid polling experts to determine how his position – and marriage itself – should morph next. This should come as no surprise given the President’s musings about the other great moral issue of our time, the protection of human life.

Unleashing America's Domestic Energy
America’s energy policy is critical to our national security and economic growth. Dependence upon foreign sources of oil limits our national security options, undermines our interests, and raises the cost of doing business in America. Unfortunately, President’s Obama’s approach has facilitated foreign dependence by restricting oil and gas drilling, making it more difficult to get nuclear permits, and picking winners and losers through failed pet energy projects. We must employ a policy that makes energy more affordable, makes our nation more secure by lessening dependence on unreliable or adversarial foreign sources, and increases conservation through efficient use and diverse energy sources. An effective energy policy will expand economic development and create high-quality jobs, resulting in a strong economy for America’s families and workers. It is time to get serious about unleashing America’s domestic energy sources.

Bold Solutions for America’s Families
I am excited about America and her future. In this election the American people have an opportunity to restore her greatness and to focus once again on protecting liberty and creating opportunity for all. No longer should it be harder for people to succeed economically than it was for their parents. No longer should upward mobility be better in parts of Europe than in America. We need a renewed focus on creating opportunity, not dividing Americans by class; on creating wealth, not distributing it; and on promoting savings rather than dependency.

Immigration Reform: Securing And Strengthing America
As the son of an Italian immigrant, Rick Santorum values the important role immigrants have played and continue to play in shaping our nation. One thing that makes America exceptional is that anyone from any part of the world can become an American by embracing our ideals and following our laws. Moving forward, America needs fair and robust immigration policy that will continue to protect Americans, reward lawful citizens, and help grow our economy. Rick Santorum believes that the key to a strong immigration policy begins with securing the American border. For America to grow and prosper, developing a strong immigration policy must become a priority. Unfortunately, President Obama has not only failed to reform America’s broken immigration system, he has also failed to secure the border against serious threats that imperil all Americans. His first visit to the border was two and a half years into his term; not exactly border first.

ObamaRegs Versus Freedom
Healthy families and a strong economy go hand in hand, each reinforcing the other. Now more than ever before, the size and scope of federal regulation threatens the ability of Americans to create goods, provide services, and choose the household products that best suit their needs. Federal regulations extend to every aspect of modern American life, so it’s certainly no surprise that they have a very high cost for American families, including those in South Carolina.

Santorum Record on Defending the Dignity of Every Human Life
Rick Santorum has been a national leader on pro-life issues with a clear record of results. He has a broad and impressive record when it came to defending the dignity of every human life, especially the most vulnerable among us. In the U.S. Senate, he authored two of the priority pro-life efforts that were signed into law by President George W. Bush – the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act and the Born Alive Infants Protection Act. He cosponsored and strongly supported numerous other bills that defended unborn victims of violence, ensured state laws on parental consent are observed by neighboring states, and championed legislation to protect the conscious rights of individuals and health care providers so they need not choose between their work and their moral principles. He steadfastly opposed the federal funding of abortion and supported President Reagan’s Mexico City Policy (abandoned by President Clinton and President Obama) that kept U.S. taxpayer dollars from going to organizations that perform or promote abortion overseas.

Appointing Constitutionalist Justices and Judges Who Refuse to Legislate from the Bench
Rick Santorum is no stranger to the issue of judges. As a U.S. Senator, he stood against activist judicial nominees time and again. As a Republican leader in the Senate, he was pivotal in the fight to confirm U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito. Rick Santorum knows what it is like to take on the left and to win on judges. He is the only Republican Candidate for President to have done so. In addition, in 2004 when activist judges sought to legislate from the bench and redefine marriage, Rick spearheaded the debate in favor of the Federal Marriage Amendment. When the Partial Birth Abortion law was improperly struck down by the Supreme Court, he led the charge in Congress to send it back to them to get it right which they did the second time, ending a horrific procedure. He believes that the time has come to break up the 9th Circuit and send a message that judicial activism is not acceptable and to provide other Western states appellate judges that better reflect their values and the U.S. Constitution.

Restoring America's Greatness Through Educational Freedom And Opportunity
Rick Santorum believes that education is the responsibility of the consumer, the parent. Putting “parents first” is how best we put “students first”. Parents have the fundamental right to direct the upbringing and education of their children with local school systems supporting, as desired. As a homeschooling parent and consumer of different schools, he has learned the importance of flexible and personalized approaches to education for each child to best maximize their potential.

Wow what grasp of economics our President has.....Geez UPS drivers? (I Want An Economy ) " Where we're making stuff and selling stuff and moving it around and UPS drivers are dropping things off everywhere."

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Nice Video, but don't people already know this? I think we do but still refuse to change the votes we give to get rid of the bad ones and keep the good ones no matter what Party they belong to.....the people control the outcome we just need to vote our conscious and not vote for who we're "suppose" to vote for with excuses like..."I've always voted __" , "The group I belong to says I need to vote...

On the sixth year anniversary of this incarnation of the TCC, I thought I republish a rant from the fourth year anniversary and state that TCC is back in full swing so look for more controversary from stating the truth about the current state of Politics in Virginia, this country and the world with no topic off limits..... although this was two years ago it seems to still apply

"I have some random thoughts on the state of politics in American, political blogging and putting your thoughts out on the web for all to read (and the consequences.) Think of it as a stream of consciousness rambling from a non-stream of consciousness guy.

The political landscape and the dissemination of information and tools that candidates must shuffle in the U.S. now-a-days is getting faster and faster and thus there is less room for errors (both past and present.) The need to “cover all bases” for even a local candidate is a two sided coin – on one side getting your message to the people faster and unfiltered (e.g. social media vs. standard newspaper, internet shows, cable, YouTube vs. network news) can only help you but on the other side the cost of campaigns has grown (even on the local level) exponentially so it is becoming that most middle to lower middle class potential candidates are finding it hard to raise the money to run for office.

People are still looking for the ‘perfect’ candidate although we all know that as humans, by nature, we are flawed beings. So, by default, every candidate we pick will let us down in the end because the expectation has become that they can never do anything that contradicts what we think they should do (even though we probably have never even talked to them on a personal level) and the grace period we allow them before making this decision has grown exponentially shorter as a result. We ask to much of politicians because we have become to dependent on government and what they can do for us….if we look to ourselves, a higher power, and our neighbors to assist us in our trials in tribulations then our dependence on the government and thus the politician lessens and we do not look for a savior, but look for a competent administrator to carry out the tasks delegated then from the masses

Political discourse has come down to a level of he said/she said with the politicians seemly not really knowing the ‘whys” of what they believe or at the very least not being able to articulate them very well. The “R” versus “D” argument is growing tired the lined gets blurred with promises and rhetoric that does not back the actions of those running for office or that the debate is more about the parties than about the candidates which in the end is who the voters should be voting for in the first place. The key to many of our best political figures, orators, teachers and preachers is that they can take complex issues, beliefs and creeds boil them down to the kernel of truth that matters and then explain them in a way that makes sense to us all…only when people feel comfortable with an idea, wrestle with it ad discern if it rings true to them can they take it to there hearts and believe in it, this is level at which we should engage the American people with conservatism and personal responsibility.

Blogging can be hazardous to you health – I blog under my own name (why wouldn’t I) because I practice what I preach and so I should be responsible for what I think or what I say but with that being said, there have been a few occasions when 1. I have felt very uncomfortable with people that oppose the TCC and the opinions of all the writers 2. I have felt very very uncomfortable with people that oppose the TCC and the opinions of all the writers and 3. there are some whackos in the immediate area that need to get a life and stop harassing bloggers they disagree with……and you all know who you are!!

The future is changing; it’s about time that this blogger start putting more actions behind his words (and criticisms) to help his community. One of the issues that I have with talk radio and most of the well known personalities is that it is very easy to criticize actions (i.e. Monday quarterbacking) that people take when there is nothing at stake but ratings and ad revenue. Putting your money where your mouth is, is the best way to live your convictions and battle through the consequences of those beliefs. It is one thing to write about what you believe, it is another thing to live if in service to others and I think that is the next step for The Contemporary Conservative. So see you all on the flip side and I’ll keep writing, if you all keep reading."

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The Contemporary Conservative is a blog about the current state of the conservative movement, from a Generation X'ers perspective, and the transformation of what it means to be a conservative in an ever-evolving world........that is, if we actually believed in evolution

Con·tem·po·rar·y1. existing, occurring, or living at the same time; belonging to the same time: Newton's discovery of the calculus was contemporary with that of Leibniz.2. of the present time; modern

Con-serv-a-tis-m1. a political or theological orientation advocating the preservation of the best in society and opposing radical changes2. A political philosophy or attitude emphasizing respect for traditional institutions, distrust of government activism, and opposition to sudden change in the established order.